All posts tagged 2012

There’s a significant development in Louisiana to add to our ballot-measure roundup. Voters in the state approved an amendment to the state constitution that strengthened the right to bear arms.

Before voters approved the amendment by a vote of 73%-27% on Tuesday, the state constitution used to say this:

The right of each citizen to keep and bear arms shall not be abridged, but this provision shall not prevent the passage of laws to prohibit the carrying of weapons concealed on the person.

Now it says this:

The right of each citizen to acquire, keep, possess, transport, carry, transfer, and use arms for defense of life and liberty, and for all other legitimate purposes is fundamental and shall not be denied or infringed, and any restriction on this right shall be subject to strict scrutiny.

The upshot is Louisiana will have a much harder time regulating concealed . . . . . Read More »

But so did a handful of less-publicized efforts around the country to change the way supreme court justices are selected.

The quick rundown:

Arizona: Arizona voters on Tuesday shot down a measure that would have changed the way judges throughout the state, including Supreme Court justices, are selected.

The current system, which applies to county Superior Courts with at least 250,000 residents as well as the state Court of Appeals and Supreme Court, uses nonpartisan commissions made up of five lawyers nominated by the State Bar of Arizona and 10 lay people. The commissions recruit and review candidates and forward the governor a slate of three nominees.

Under the ballot measure rejected Tuesday, rather than nominating lawyers for commissions, the State Bar would have appointed one and the governor would have appointed the other four without the State Bar’s input.

Eric Stimson, of Des Moines, Iowa, holds a sign in support of Iowa Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins.

Voting not to retain state Supreme Court justices might someday become a common way that voters showcase their disagreement with justices’ decisions.

But Tuesday’s election results indicate that that day has yet to arrive. Let’s give you the rundown on all the major judicial elections.

Iowa: For starters, Iowa voters elected to keep Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins. Justice Wiggins was the fourth Iowa Supreme Court justice to stand for a retention vote since the seven-justice Iowa Supreme Court unanimously ruled to legalize same-sex marriage in 2009.

The three former justices were ousted in 2010, largely as a response to the ruling. It was the first time since 1962, when Iowa adopted the merit-selection process, that a justice was not retained.

But Justice Wiggins will not suffer the same fate. He needed a simple majority of votes to stay on high court. With 83% of Iowa’s 1,689 precincts reported, Justice Wiggins had 54%.

Florida: Meanwhile, efforts to oust three justices of the Florida Supreme Court also failed. The Florida Republican Party’s executive committee had unanimously voted to oppose the three justices — Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince — warning they were “liberal” and “too extreme.” The effort marked the first time a Florida political party has taken a position in a retention race.

In Wednesday’s post-election roundup, we take a look at how ballot measures fared throughout the country.

Gay marriage: In Maine and Maryland, voters approved ballot initiatives to begin allowing same-sex unions. And in Minnesota voters declined to back an initiative that would enshrine in the state’s constitution a definition of marriage permitting only a union between a man and woman. In Washington state, where voters also weighed an initiative to legalize gay marriage, the vote count was expected to stretch on for days. WSJ

(Also, in Wisconsin, Rep. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat, defeated the four-time governor, Tommy Thompson, for a seat in the U.S. Senate. She will be the first openly gay senator in the nation’s history.)

Death Penalty: California voters on Tuesday rejected a ballot measure that would have repealed the state’s death penalty. Mercury News

Marijuana: Voters in Colorado and Washington state approved measures that legalize the recreational use of marijuana. . . Read More »

We’ve put together lists of names people involved with both campaigns have been kicking around for the next attorney general of the U.S. These lists are subject to major revision from now until the president makes his decision, of course. But here’s some fodder for thought on Election Day.

If Mitt Romney wins, he may choose to pluck his attorney general from the political realm. But there are also several names in circulation from the legal establishment. Here are the LB short-listers:

Jon Kyl, U.S. senator for Arizona. Sen. Kyl, the Senate minority whip, is a longtime member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He is retiring this year, after three terms in the Senate and eight years in the House. He is a strong conservative voice, and he has been critical of Attorney General Eric Holder on a range of issues, from national security to the department’s handling of the probe into Operation Fast and Furious.

Kelly Ayotte, U.S. senator for New Hampshire. A relative newcomer, Sen. Ayotte was elected in 2010, after five years as her state’s attorney general. In 2005, she personally argued before the Supreme Court in defense of a New Hampshire law requiring parental notification . . . . .

Because of the Electoral College, voters in so-called “swing states” have an inordinate amount of power. Despite all the noise about these swing voters, the actual, quantifiable weight of their votes has been largely glossed over. Law Blog crunched the numbers.

Voters wait hours in long lines to cast their early vote at the Summit County Board of Elections on Monday in Akron, Ohio.

It’s unlikely, says the political punditry, that the results from the 2012 presidential election will hinge on a recount in a closely divided state, like Ohio.

That said, neither the Romney nor Obama campaigns are taking any chances, especially with the Florida experience in 2000 lodged firmly in the nation’s memory banks. Both sides have mobilized thousands of lawyers to look out for voting irregularities today, and have done extensive homework on the recount policies and procedures in each of the battleground states.

Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. administers the oath of office to President Barack Obama on Jan. 20, 2009.

When the next president of the U.S. takes his oath of office, he won’t be standing on a podium in the cold in front of an audience of tens of thousands. President Barack Obama’s first (and perhaps only) term ends at noon on Jan. 20, a Sunday, per the 20th Amendment. Inaugurations aren’t held on Sundays.

But the country needs a president, so the victor in Tuesday’s election will likely take the oath that Sunday, in a more intimate setting, and then take it again the following Monday during the inauguration ceremony, to keep appearances. But he will have already been the president for a few hours, and capable of executing the duties of the office.

On Monday, we told you that, because of a judicial retention election, voters in Iowa will be able to have their voices heard on the issue of same-sex marriage, despite the issue itself not appearing on the ballot.

Four states were deciding on same-sex-marriage questions that gay-rights activists say could mark a turning point in their campaign for popular support. In Maine, Maryland and Washington state, measures would legalize same-sex marriage. Minnesota voters were asked . . . Read More »

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The Law Blog covers the legal arena’s hot cases, emerging trends and big personalities. It’s brought to you by lead writer Jacob Gershman with contributions from across The Wall Street Journal’s staff. Jacob comes here after more than half a decade covering the bare-knuckle politics of New York State. His inside-the-room reporting left him steeped in legal and regulatory issues that continue to grab headlines.

A federal judge in Manhattan rejected a bid by the conservative advocacy group Citizens United to stop New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman from requiring that charities disclose to him their major donors.

Concerns about a gender gap in the legal profession tend to focus on issues like pay, billing rates and who makes partner. A new study by the American Bar Association looks inside the federal courtroom to see who's trying cases.